I just wanted to let everyone know that I got my 3 wt. 7'6" 3 Forks rod in the mail yesterday. I wanted to post MY first impressions of this rod as I have heard many conflicting reviews about his rod from many sources. Thought it might be nice if I added to the confusion!!

First thing I was surprised that it came with a rod sleeve. It didn't say anything about it in the catalog or on the website and as a matter of fact I almost bought one when I ordered the rod. The sleeve is nothing special, just 3 separate compartments to put the rod pieces in, roll it up and tie it together.

Next I paid special attention to the reel seat as I had heard these rods really skimped on this particular component. I was impressed. It is a double up locking reel seat that appears to made of nickel. It looks well machined and solid. I tugged at it a few times and found no movement or play in it. No problems there. I believe that Cabelas upgraded the components on these rods this year, so if you don't have the new model of this rod you might see something different.

The finish on the rod is a dark olive-brown that I found attractive. The wraps are gold. The only complaint I might have is that I got the impression that a few of the guides weren't PERFECTLY aligned. (Then again, maybe I can't line up a rod right) I know nothing about rod building so maybe this perceived slight imperfection is par for the course, especially on a low end rod.

I put my SA GPX 4wt. DT. line on my Albright Topwater reel to play around with the rod in my yard and enjoyed myself. I am a beginning fly fisher so I won't start to talk about actions and tapers and all that technical stuff. Let me just say that I thought the rod felt good. I could feel the line load the rod and could shoot 30 to 40 feet out easily. I don't think in practice I will ever be doing this as I bought the rod as a small creek rod where there really is no room for a 30 or 40 foot cast, I just wanted to play a bit with it.

I paid 50 bucks for this rod. I have been shaking and looking at a lot of sticks in the past month, and if this rod had a 150 dollar price tag I wouldn't have thought anything of it. I paid 50 from Cabelas for it and think I got a steal. We'll see how it holds up this season!